Quid Quo Pro
by Queen of Juiceboxes
Summary: Finding out that Kuchiki Rukia, the perfect nerd of Karakura High, was sister to a well-known gang leader was pretty surprising, especially for someone like Ichigo, who liked to get into a whole lot of mischief. AU IchiRuki.
1. Wanting Change

Summary: Finding out that Kuchiki Rukia, the perfect nerd of Karakura high, was the sister of a well-known gang leader was pr

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, I don't own these characters, and I don't own my home (because my parents do). **

This idea has been nagging at me for a little while, and I decided to use it for a Bleach fic. It's gonna be another long one (more than likely) but I think you will like it. The summary doesn't really say much, so just read it and tell me what you think.

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**Quid Quo Pro**

**Ch.1 **

Wanting Change

Kurosaki Ichigo had done everything he possibly and physically could to prevent himself from hearing the perplexing sounds that tuned away from around him, but the noise would not drain.

Pressing the pillow further to his already pillow-smashed head didn't do much either.

After squeezing his eyes and gritting his teeth for the final time, Ichigo arose from his small futon.

The floors creaked from beneath him as a sigh escaped from his dry mouth. His eyes were only half open, seeing as it was five in the morning.

Opening the shoji doors to his room, Ichigo took a right in the hallway towards where the irritating sound came from. A small girl was sitting on the floor, two pieces of hair glued to the middle of her forehead, her eyes soft and innocent.

The small girl, Ururu, was fumbling with…a vacuum.

A vacuum at five in the morning.

"Ururu, what the hell are you doing?" Ichigo grumbled, fighting to keep just one eye open. He had to get up in one hour for school, and that didn't help when he was always already grumpy at his all too bubbly high school.

"I'm fixing the vacuum, it broke." Ururu replied dryly. Ichigo stared at her, completely mystified.

"But why at five in the morning?" Ichigo replied, hoping that he could get to stop her ridiculous ways.

"Because Urahara-san will be getting up in one hour, and it will take me approximately fifty minutes to fix this, and then another ten minutes to clean the shop." Ururu replied. Ichigo could only throw a hard glare, though he figured the girl wouldn't notice it.

He slowly turned on his heel and walked back to his bed, figuring that he would just have to deal with hearing a vacuum being worked on for the next hour.

Living with Urahara Kisuke, Ichigo's uncle, had not been such a wise idea. Isshin Kurosaki, Ichigo's father, wanted to go on a trip around the country for a year, looking into different medical fields and how things were handled nation-wide, the problem was Ichigo didn't want to go, though Yuzu and Karin seemed thrilled to go on a fun filled adventure with their over the top father.

So, the solution was to live with Urahara, a relative that lived smack dab in the middle of Karakura, Ichigo's hometown, but he wished he hadn't. Urahara wasn't too much of a problem, but the other three people, Tessai, a strict psycho man, Jinta, a bratty kid with red hair, and Ururu, a freakishly robot girl that new way to much for her young age.

All in all, a very obnoxious house, and Ichigo had only been living there for a month.

He had the entire school year to go.

"Why did Urahara even adopt Ururu and Jinta? They're insane." Ichigo mumbled to himself, trying to get some shut eye.

Sleep didn't happen, because seconds later did Ururu begin her fumbling with the vacuum ordeal again, and no sooner than later was Ichigo arising from his crappy futon to get ready for a more than likely crappy day of school.

Once his clothes were on, Ichigo did the things most boys his age, or any human being really, he took a shower, brushed his teeth, and combed his extremely knotted hair, though most of the tangles stayed.

Walking into the kitchen was the part of the morning he dreaded.

"You're late!" Jinta cried, chucking a metal spoon at Ichigo's head. Honestly, he thought that living with his uncle would cause him to avoid unnecessary and unwanted injuries.

Ichigo just closed his eyes and walked further into the kitchen, hoping to grab a quick piece of toast.

"No Ichigo-san, eat this." Tessai, standing directly and way too closely to Ichigo demanded, a cup full of egg yolk in his left hand.

"Ah, no thanks." Ichigo replied, backing away slowly.

"It will take Tessai approximately 11.5 seconds to shove the egg yolk down your throat." Ururu responded, staring at the bowl in her seat.

"Shut up Ururu, why don't you go sweep or something?" Jinta asked, smacking Ururu on the head. She covered up the bump with her hand, a frown forming on her face.

Ichigo went to say something, but felt the most disgusting and vile taste of liquid on the planet as, like Ururu predicted, Tessai pushed the cup down into Ichigo's mouth.

"Ichigo-san! I'm so glad you're up!" Chirped Urahara, entering the kitchen with a lazy smile on his face.

"Hey." Ichigo replied. He'd had enough of the…crazy people that morning, and so, he took a piece of bread and walked out the door, hoping that no one would follow him out.

* * *

The walk to his school had taken a total of seven minutes, seven minutes devoted to thinking, planning, and sometimes even..daydreaming, though it wasn't of perverted things like he knew most boys did when they were in high school.

Besides, he referred to those as wet dreams.

Walking into the gates of Karakura high, Ichigo found all of the student body surrounding him, talking, laughing, and some (all girls) were giggling like no tomorrow. He didn't want to know what the females of his high school "giggled" about, and he decided he never wanted to.

Girls and their secrets scared him more than many things.

He slowly began making his way towards the school, wishing he didn't have such a bright set of hair on his head. It seemed that no how bright or dark the sky was, Ichigo's head stood out like the sun coming from rain clouds.

Ichigo felt eyes on him all the way into the building, but he didn't let it bother him. A person staring at him was just something he was used to, whether he liked it or not.

After finally walking into the school, Ichigo found lockers on both sides of him, obvious freshman still trying to get their lockers open frantically, sweat pouring down their young faces. Then there were seniors, like him, who usually didn't use a locker. It wasn't that they didn't have a lot of books, lockers were just out of the question. Most people used their lockers for gym class anyway.

It was only the second of week of his senior year, and he already wished he was walking down the aisle for graduation. College easily sounded farfetched, like it wasn't really going to happen, but at the same time, Ichigo felt ready for it, ready to leave his town with his friends and go off to meet more people.

Going to college, Ichigo wouldn't have his "the depressed angry boy" reputation, or so he hoped. He knew he had the tendency to look pissed off all the time, but he didn't scowl as often as he did when he was younger, and he hoped that by going to college, people would see him differently, and maybe he wouldn't even feel so obliged to look pissed off all the time.

It just didn't help either when he currently lived with his uncle, who was honestly doing a much better of job of making Ichigo go insane better than his father.

He'd almost made it to his class without glancing up at anyone once, a goal he'd been trying to do, but unfortunately, someone that no one could not look at walked by him.

Kuchiki Rukia.

It's not that she was gorgeous, or that she had a good body, or that she was even popular, there was just…something about her.

Perhaps it was because she did look unique, with a piece of hair stuck to the middle of her face that she somehow pulled off, with her hair curving nicely around her face. Perhaps it was because her eyes were a violet color, instead of the usual green, blue, or brown most human beings had. Or perhaps it was due to the fact that Rukia was the president of just about every well-known higher up club at Karakura high.

Seeing that last reason, it was kind of hard to not know who she was. Maybe it did make her…popular in a lot of ways, but Ichigo didn't see that, since he never saw a lot of people walking with her, ever.

Plus, she was extremely short.

School, for the latter part, struck Ichigo as extremely boring. Minus having a few classes with his friends, Ichigo never found anything interesting about the information he learned in his classes, or the teachers that taught it.

"Turn your books to page 112, which talks about the way our government works." The teacher instructed. With one hand propped on his chin, Ichigo turned the page slowly, averting his eyes back and forth from the extremely pointless textbook pictures to the printed words on the pages.

After a while of his teacher blabbering about how Japan's government began, Ichigo tuned it out, deciding he'd heard enough about Japanese history for the day, and for the rest of his life really. He couldn't even count how many history classes he'd taken in his life. Ichigo could probably list every known Japanese leader from memory.

He glanced around the classroom, from the chalkboard to the large windows to his left. There was just…nothing to do.

Ichigo had been so excited to get to his senior year, the last year of high school, the close to a saga in his life, and yet, he felt so…not excited to say the least.

Hearing the sound of the bell made Ichigo jump, but he was quickly relieved to finally get out of the boring class. As he packed his book into his bag, a familiar voice crept up next to him.

"Ichigo! Why didn't you call me yesterday?" Keigo Asano asked. Ichigo rolled his eyes. Keigo acted like his lovesick girlfriend, which was so wrong on so many levels.

"I told you Keigo, I can't use the phone at night because my uncle needs it for his business, and I don't really want to talk to you over the phone anyway." Ichigo replied dully. Keigo looked…upset, but that was actually something normal.

"You're never going to change are you?" Keigo asked as they left the classroom to walk to their next class.

"What are you talking about?" Ichigo asked, not catching onto Keigo's suddenly serious tone.

"So many people have changed! I mean, look at Chad; he actually said a word this year! And Uryuu Ishida took up sowing lessons, and Chizuru, who would have thought she was lesbian!" Keigo cried.

"What are you getting at?" Ichigo asked.

"You're still the same. Always looking angry and throwing scowls every chance you get." Keigo replied.

"Shut up Keigo. You're still as perverted as always." Ichigo shot back.

"But that's natural! That's another thing, you never check out girls. Are you sure you aren't…gay?" Keigo asked, his face looking vile.

Ichigo was tempted to whack Keigo on the head.

"Keigo, I'm going to kick you in the balls if you don't stop."

"But there are so many options here! Take Inoue Orihime for instance, sweet, but busty! Or Tatsuki Arisawa, strong with an attitude!" Keigo went on.

"I'm going to class now." Ichigo replied and turned into his classroom. He heard Keigo sigh dramatically from outside the doorway.

He slumped into his seat, annoyed with Keigo, which was what usually occurred. So what if Ichigo didn't like any girls at the moment. He'd never really liked any girl throughout high school, but it didn't bother him. Ichigo had plenty of time to look at girls, so why should he suddenly need to his senior year, when he would be leaving for college shortly after?

School continued on somehow or the other as it always did, and in the blink of an eye, Ichigo was walking out of the building, next to, surprise surprise, Keigo.

"Man! There's this new girl in my math class, and let me tell you, I've never seen such a beautiful chest!!" Keigo cried. Ichigo eventually tuned him out.

Walking out the door, the same students were standing around, talking, flirting, and fighting.

"You know? I think Kuchiki Rukia is pretty hott. I mean, she doesn't have a big bust or anything, but she has amazing legs." Keigo said from next to Ichigo. Hearing the name Kuchiki, Ichigo looked to where the girl was.

As always, Kuchiki Rukia was alone, sitting down on a bench staring at a book.

"She's smart too. It's hard to believe, but she's only been here two years and already she's president of so many activities." Keigo stated with a more serious tone.

Ichigo looked at the girl for a moment before turning his shoulders and sighing.

"Who cares?" Ichigo mumbled. "I'll see you on Monday Keigo." And Ichigo would be dreading it.

Kuchiki Rukia was a goody girl that everyone looked at because she was…to them, still new and fresh, even if it had been two years. Ichigo would admit that there was something unique about her, but regarding her status at the school, he tried to ignore whatever rumors flew about.

"What? What about tonight? I thought you said you would hang out with me!" Keigo cried.

"I can't. I have to work for my uncle." Ichigo replied. Keigo looked…awkwardly upset again, but turned on his heel and walked off.

The one good thing about living with Urahara was that Ichigo got to work for him. Ichigo didn't get paid a whole lot, but it was better than getting nothing. Usually, Ichigo would run into town, get a few things Urahara needed for the store, and come back, which usually took a few hours.

Honestly, Ichigo liked his uncle. Urahara was a pretty calm guy, and even gave good advice every once in a while, unlike his father. Urahara also let Ichigo stay out much later on the weekends.

Upon entering his home, Urahara was standing in the doorway, a list in his hand.

"This is what I need you to get, and I need it by ten o'clock tonight." Urahara said dryly, passing the sheet to Ichigo.

"I have to go to downtown Tokyo?" Ichigo asked in shock. Urahara rarely let Ichigo go so far.

"You'll be alright kid. You know how to defend yourself. Surely Isshin taught you that."

Oh, Isshin surely had.

"Here's the bus tickets, now get going." Urahara replied. Ichigo sighed deeply, and turned to walk out of the house.

His day had officially turned busy.

Walking to the train station, Ichigo continued to think about how his senior year was going, and as much as he hated to admit it, Keigo's words continued to haunt him.

Did people really see him as such a mean guy? Just because he wasn't so outgoing like Keigo and the rest of his class? And so what if he wasn't interested in the female anatomy.

Something stirred inside Ichigo, and he suddenly wished for something in his life to change, for something new and different to happen, that would change his senior year, and maybe…himself.

"Maybe someone will mug me in Tokyo." Ichigo humored to himself with a small smirk.

But really, he wanted his life to change.

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**A/N: **OK! First chapter, and I just want to say, this story is going to be my last story for a while, minus the other two I have up. I REALLY don't want to abandon this story, so look, I know there was absolutely no plot in this chapter, but trust me, it will all start picking up quickly in the next. Can you guys do me a huge favor? When and if you review, try telling me why you did or didn't like this chapter, what I can do to improve it, and any other advice. I've gotten wonderful advice in the past about what to do, so I want to use it, and bring this story to my full potential. I would really like to write novels when I get older, and possibly major in writing in college, but getting your help, people that read because they want to, would mean the world to me!!

Sorry for the blabbing, but I wanted to say that to you. Like I said, next chapter will be much more eventful, and as for Rukia not being in this chapter much, it all has to do with the fact that Ichigo doesn't see her as anything…special or different. As you can see from the summary I gave for this story, you will notice that she's very different.

PS: Hope you all liked that Urahara is Ichigo's uncle! (that will be explained more thoroughly to come).


	2. No Sense at All

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, I don't own these characters, and I don't own my home (because my parents do). **

Ch.2, but technically chapter 1. I'm sorry the last chapter wasn't very uneventful, but hopefully this chapter will get you pulled in! I feel that so far it's a pretty quick paced story, I mean, not too rushed or anything, but you'll understand once you begin to read it.

Thanks for all the reviews!

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**Quid Quo Pro**

**Ch.2**

**No Sense at All**

Ichigo glanced at the sheet sitting in front of him, checking off of one of the to-do items Urahara had asked him to do.

"Now I just need to go to and make sure the other packages get delivered to the shop." Ichigo mumbled to himself, wanting nothing more than to return home.

Tokyo Japan was just too crowded with people. There was never an empty spot on the sidewalk, or any store not overstuffed with people. It was just…too much.

Ichigo was glad he lived in Karakura, a smaller suburban area of Tokyo.

He would admit that it was a pretty sight to see. Lights, billboards, and advertisements flashed all around him, and Ichigo found himself staring back at the fabulous lights. Ichigo felt like a tourist at times, and he supposed he was, considering he was still new at coming to Tokyo so often.

It surprised him that Urahara even let Ichigo go to Tokyo all by himself on a Friday night. One of the stores required him to travel to downtown Tokyo, which he had to admit, worried him. Downtown Tokyo was not a good area of the city, and although Ichigo felt he could take care of himself, it still scared him a little.

Yet at the same time, Ichigo felt excitement.

Going downtown would be something different, and although it might scream danger, Ichigo kind of liked the whole danger feeling. Not that he got into trouble or anything, but he'd had his share of boy fun, and liked the rush he felt.

Ichigo wasn't so sure he could feel that way in Tokyo, but anything was worth a shot.

Thinking soon became impossible as people jam-packed around him, talking to their neighbors loudly, or trying to hear who ever they were talking on the phone clearly. It felt similar to eating lunch at school, over the top. Pushing himself through the crowd, Ichigo made it to the side of where the shops were, having a little bit more room to move about. A voice much louder than the rest of the people talking around him caught his attention, and he turned his head to the right to see a bunch of televisions in the window of a store.

"The unknown Yakuza gang struck again late last night, leaving two members of another gang injured, and one dead. No one knows the name of this gang, and local officials are still unsure if it is the same gang doing the dirty work. The only evidence they have of the gang members are the symbols they wear. If anyone comes across someone wearing a black jacket, with a red dragon on their right sleeve, local officials ask that you leave immediately, and stay free of danger." The reporter went on.

Ichigo had been so caught up in the news that he hadn't realized the people walking, and quickly hurried forward.

Gangs were what made downtown Tokyo dangerous. Ichigo had heard about them plenty, particularly the unknown gang the reporter had been talking about. Were they a new gang?

Finding the next store Ichigo needed to enter, he walked briskly into the door, aggravated at the large amount of people wandering around in the small space, and tried his best to push himself through the crowd like before.

It was honestly safe to say that Ichigo could never live in Tokyo.

An old lady stood behind the counter, her glasses nearly bigger than her head.

"What do you want?" The old lady asked in a rude tone. Ichigo sighed and pulled out a small crumbled sheet from his pocket, and handed it to the lady.

"What is this?" The lady barked, averting her eyes back and forth from the list.

"I need everything on that list delivered to a shop in Karakura town." Ichigo replied. The older lady scanned the sheet again before nodding her head.

"Alright, fine kid, what's the address?" The lady mumbled, getting a pen from behind her counter.

"11265 Sakura Pine Drive, Karakura Town, Japan, 11210." Ichigo replied. The lady nodded.

"Why couldn't you have just called to get these items delivered?" The woman asked.

"Our phones have been acting up." Ichigo replied. As if it were any of the woman's business why Ichigo were coming to her shop. She sure was a nosy woman.

"Alright alright, well the delivery will take a few days." The woman replied.

"Thanks." Ichigo mumbled, and turned around, pushing himself out of the store like before to get to the exit.

Most of his jobs that evening consisted of requesting deliveries to the shop, as Urahara sometimes made Ichigo do. He only had to pick up one thing for the store, and it was small enough for Ichigo to stick in his pocket.

After repeating the process at several other stores, Ichigo made his way to the bus-stop to travel to Downtown Japan. Ichigo had only gone once, and it had been during the day.

* * *

To Ichigo's luck, most of the stores and businesses he'd stopped at while traveling around downtown Tokyo had not been too bad. He saw some homeless people, and several men that gave him a hard eye. Luckily, Ichigo had long covered up his head of fire due to the cold with the hood of his jacket, so at least no one would start something because of his hair, which had the tendency to happen when he was younger in Karakura.

The problem was that Ichigo had gotten himself lost. Ichigo was supposed to be home by eleven, and it was ten forty five. He was a little worried. Urahara never got angry with him, but Tessai on the other hand would not let him off the hook, and he was sure of it.

Seeing the bus-station in the clearing, Ichigo ran to catch the bus, although he had plenty of time to spare. It was just so dark, and all the streets sounded similar, that caused Ichigo to finally reach the bus.

To his surprise, there were quite a few people aboard, mainly old people, and a few other people that looked sane.

The bus began to move, and Ichigo leaned his head against the window. All in all, Ichigo didn't like the jobs Urahara made him do. Sure, it was an excuse to get out of the house, and he was getting paid, but it was still pretty boring, and sometimes it felt pointless.

About five minutes later, more people were entering the bus. Ichigo glanced at them as they took their seats, but his eyes suddenly froze when they fell onto a very familiar person.

Kuchiki Rukia.

She had her purse attached to her right arm, wearing a light blue coat over whatever outfit she had on. Her eyes were still the same strange violet color, and she still walked like the same quiet girl at school.

And then the questions overflowed in his mind.

Why the hell was Kuchiki Rukia in downtown Tokyo, on the exact same bus that he happened to get on? Why was she all by herself? Did she know someone down there? A family member? A friend? It would have been one thing to see anyone else from his class, but not her, not someone so thought of as being high and mighty, due to her grades and status to the school.

It was just…too overwhelming, and she hadn't even seen him. Then again, he didn't know her at all, so it was quite unlikely that she would recognize him anyway, plus, he had his hood on to cover up his orange hair.

He watched her take her seat, and had to turn his head back around when she finally sat down. The bus began to move, and Ichigo kept his eyes forward.

It bothered him how curious he suddenly was about Rukia. What kind of sick coincidence was Ichigo witnessing?

The night strolled on, and more and more people were exiting the bus rather than entering. Ichigo was in all honesty still completely unaware of where his location was, despite being on a bus that was supposed to take him closer to Karakura.

Besides, he wanted to know more about Rukia, and why the hell she happened to be in downtown Tokyo at the exact same time as him, even if it was on a Friday night.

Ichigo finally called Urahara to let him know he was still out and about. As Ichigo figured, Urahara in know way cared, and even sounded a little annoyed that Ichigo called him in the first place. He hung up his phone and glanced at a street sign outside, hoping he could figure out where he was.

Like usual, the street name brought up nothing familiar in Ichigo's mind.

Rukia continued to stay on the bus as well.

Perhaps she was lost?

More and more people left the bus, until Ichigo and Rukia were the only ones aboard. It was about 11:45, and Ichigo hoped and prayed Tessai wouldn't get on him too hard.

He was tempted to go and talk to Rukia, to see if she had any clue where she was like him, but he fought with himself. She probably wouldn't recognize him, even if he did take his hood off. Kuchiki Rukia never glanced at others. She probably only talked to people at the meetings she attended as president to all the clubs.

The bus stopped once again, although Ichigo was pretty sure no one would be entering the bus.

Ichigo was very, very wrong.

He couldn't help but stare at the two men that walked aboard, and the news Ichigo had been watching earlier repeated in his brain.

Two men wearing black jackets with a red dragon on their right sleeve entered the bus. When they both glanced over at Ichigo, he quickly turned away.

"_If anyone comes across someone wearing a black jacket, with a red dragon on their right sleeve, local officials ask that you leave immediately, and stay free of danger." _

That was Ichigo's immediate response to seeing the yakuza members, but then he remembered that he was not the only high school student sitting in a seat further back then him, which was where the two yakuza members were headed.

He wanted to high tail it off the bus, but he couldn't bring himself to leave Rukia, who was probably not very good at defending herself, on the bus all alone. Ichigo was a descent fighter, as he'd had to fight a lot when he was younger, when people attacked him because of his hair color.

Ichigo turned his head around to where Rukia was facing, and sure enough, the men were heading straight towards her. He whipped his head back around to where the bus driver sat, hoping to get some help, but his eyes widened.

The bus driver too had a black jacket on, and from what Ichigo could tell the same symbol on his right sleeve. When had the driver put the jacket on? Surely he hadn't had it on the whole time, while other passengers were riding freely around.

"Scoot over." A voice from behind Ichigo said. He whipped his head around to see the two men circling around Rukia, and although she did not look fearful, he had the feeling she was just the type of person that hid her emotions well.

Ichigo closed his eyes and stood from his spot, taking slow steps towards the two men and Rukia.

Being raised to protect his sisters, Ichigo couldn't help but have the natural instinct to want to protect Rukia, another student in his school he really didn't know.

It surprised him when Rukia did scoot over, and he quickened his pace.

"Hey! Let her go!" Ichigo shouted, hoping to stop the men from their actions.

The two men froze and turned to stare long and hard at Ichigo.

It was then that he noticed the two katanas at their hip, their hands gripping the hilt dangerously.

"Who the hell are you?" One of the men asked. He was bald with a strange red color on the corner of both of his eyes, probably another part of the gang.

Ichigo gulped, but moved forward.

"It doesn't matter, but it'd be wise if you let that girl go." Ichigo said back, hoping the determination in his face was enough to let them know he was serious.

"And what are you going to do about it?" The other man asked, his hair a strange maroon color, pulled up into a high pony tail. He had a bandana tied around his forehead, the same dragon symbol on his arm on the bandana.

"Punch the living daylights out of you is what." Ichigo threatened taking another step forward.

Ichigo finally glanced at Rukia again, and saw that she looked to be in…shock.

Did she recognize him after all?

"Take your hood off." Rukia suddenly spoke, her voice strangely calm.

Ichigo stared at her blankly, wondering why she would ask such a thing in the midst of being attacked. He did as she asked, and he didn't like how her eyes widened further, like his hair was monstrous.

"I know you, don't I?" Rukia asked.

"Yah er, we go to school together." Ichigo replied.

Something wasn't right.

Rukia was talking calmly, the men that were around her weren't attacking him or trying to hurt Rukia.

"You know this guy, Rukia?" The guy with the bandana asked.

Ichigo's eyes widened. How the hell did they know Kuchiki Rukia's name?

"Like he just said, he goes to my school." Rukia replied, surprise still on her face.

"Well we've got a problem then." The bald guy mumbled to Rukia.

The red-headed guy and Rukia both nodded, though Rukia looked much worried than the others.

"You_ know_ these guys?" Ichigo finally asked Rukia.

The red-headed guy stepped closer to Ichigo.

"Now is not the time kid. You shouldn't even be on this bus." The guy mumbled.

The sound of a watch beeping caught their attention, and Rukia's body stiffened.

"It's time." Rukia whispered, averting her eyes back to Ichigo's. He hadn't ever looked at Rukia very much, but he'd never seen her so open.

"What do we do? They'll be here any second!" The bald guy shouted.

"We need to hide you." The red-head guy replied. He grabbed Ichigo by the shirt of his collar and shoved him to the back of the bus.

"Hide behind the last row, and I swear, I'll slice you with this sword if you make a sound." The bald guy muttered to him. Ichigo obeyed the man, as his threat sounded loud and clear.

As he slunk onto the ground at the back of the bus, he just couldn't figure anything out. How did Rukia know those men? Who was coming to talk to them on the bus?

How come those gang members hadn't already killed Ichigo?

His body froze when the bus doors opened again, and slow footsteps slowly began entering on the bus. Ichigo looked out of the back window and saw no street signs or anything familiar.

Where were they?

Ichigo's night had really turned into something else.

It was already extremely crazy that Kuchiki Rukia had sat on the same bus as he had, but then to find that she has something to do with…a wanted and what sounded like a deadly gang?

He just hoped he could survive the night.

An unfamiliar voice caught his attention.

"Ah, Rukia-san, what a pleasant surprise." A deep voice said coolly.

"Sousuke-san, how are you?" Rukia replied, her voice sounding…too calm and peaceful.

"I was just dropping off this treaty your leader wanted us to sign." The man, Sousuke, Ichigo presumed, replied.

"Thank you." Rukia replied.

There was a long silence until Rukia spoke again.

"There was never any agreement in the treaty for the boundaries to change." Rukia snapped back, her voice a little bit more menacing and tough than before.

Ichigo was still having trouble picturing the quiet Rukia talking with such energy and life. What was he to say anyways? He knew just about zip about her.

The sounds of guns loading made Ichigo worry.

"Your leader asked me to make a new treaty, he never said any details of what." Sousuke replied, his voice not as cool and conformed as before.

"I'm sorry Sousuke-san, but this is a big problem." Rukia replied.

"It's only a problem for you." The man Sousuke replied.

"I suggest you go and redo the treaty, taking of these boundary changes. I may not be much of a threat to you, but the leader will be." Rukia replied.

"No, you are indeed no threat at all, which is why I have no problem with taking your life." Sousuke replied.

The sound of a gun shot was heard, and Ichigo rose to his feet, adrenaline filling his veins at the thought of someone hurting another person right in front of his face.

Instead, he got seven shocked stares, including Rukia, who was injured free.

"And who is this?" Sousuke asked, pointing a gun directly at Ichigo.

Ichigo had simply wished for something in his life to change, not for it to end.

* * *

**A/N: **Intense right? A little? I really hoped this chapter turned out alright, I mean, I know it wasn't really…fun filled, but I personally liked it. And if people are like "that seems highly impossible for Ichigo to happen to get on the exact same bus as Rukia" well I highly disagree. Ichigo wanted something crazy to happen, and he got his wish. Everything happens for a reason people (that's my belief) so I hope you enjoyed it. Things will obviously be explained to come if anyone was wondering. It's supposed to be kind of unanswered and confusing.

I know I updated this quickly, but I always do that for the second chapter since the first is usually the intro.

PLEASE REVIEW!!


	3. Wanting Answers

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**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, I don't own these characters, and I don't own my home (because my parents do). **

Because I'm insane, and already wrote this chapter ahead of time, here it is. Ch.3! But…really Ch.2. What's going to happen to Ichigo? Is he going to die?? Well, that answer should be obvious tehe. Read and enjoy! Thanks for the reviews!

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**Quid Quo Pro**

**Ch.3 Wanting Answers  
**

A silver gun was raised directly to Ichigo's head.

He could feel the sweat pouring down his forehead, and instead, he tried to listen to the voices talking around him to ease his mind.

"Who is he?" Sousuke repeated. Ichigo averted his eyes to Rukia's since he was afraid his head would get blown off if he moved.

There was no reply from Rukia, and so Sousuke spoke again.

"Alright then, if you are unaware that he was on this bus, then he must be disposed of. We can't let people run around knowing the information we have discussed."

Sousuke aimed his gun more accurately, and Ichigo knew he was about to get shot, and probably die.

"NO!" Rukia screamed before anything could be fired.

Ichigo opened his eyes when Rukia shouted, hoping she could save his life.

"Ready to talk now?" Sousuke asked. The two men standing next to Sousuke turned their heads to Rukia, waiting for her to respond.

"Yes, you see, he is a member of our gang." Rukia replied. Ichigo tried to look as composed as Rukia did as she continued to speak.

"Then if he is a member of your gang, why was he hiding?" Sousuke asked.

There was another long pause.

"He's new to our gang, and we're training him. The boss didn't want him coming tonight, but he had some work to do late, so we told him to stay put in the back of bus since he's not quite experienced yet to come to meetings like these." The red-headed man replied.

The man Sousuke, his glasses looking dangerous, stared at Ichigo long and hard.

"Is that so? That's an odd way to do things. Well Rukia-san, I really don't want to cause any blood shed tonight, and I'm sure your leader would be very unhappy if I killed you, so I will do my best and go redo this treaty I have made. But," Sousuke paused. "If you were lying to me Rukia-san, and he was not a member of your gang, well, that would not be something good for you and your leader. Leaving a witness to leave freely is very dangerous, for you at least." Sousuke finished with a smile.

It really freaked Ichigo out. He glanced to look at Rukia again to see an expression of dread.

The Sousuke fellow really meant business, and Ichigo believed him, as he had been about two seconds away from death.

"Well that is all then. I suppose I'll see you at our next get together, which should be soon." Sousuke replied as he turned on his heel to leave.

Before he and his two men walked off of the bus, Sousuke paused and looked at Ichigo one last time.

"I'd like to see you at the next meeting, to see how much you've improved." Sousuke said with ease.

Ichigo stared blankly at the entrance of the bus as the men finally were out. The bus began moving again, and quickly.

The next thing Ichigo felt were two hands grabbing onto his collar, and his back ramming into one of the side windows.

"Did you think that my threat to you was just some joke?" The bald guy hissed. "Why didn't you stay hidden like we asked you to? Do you know what you have just done?"

"Let him go Ikkaku." Rukia demanded.

"But he's screwed up everything Rukia! Byakuya-sama is going to kill us!" The bald guy, Ikkaku as Rukia had calmed him, replied.

"Ikkaku! Let him go now!" Rukia shouted with great force. Slowly Ikkaku released his grip on Ichigo, allowing him to stand up straight again.

"I need you to explain to me why you are here." Rukia asked in a much calmer voice, the man Ikkaku, and the other guy standing behind her, staring intently at Ichigo.

"No, the real question is what the hell do you have to do with a gang Miss President of every club." Ichigo shot back.

Rukia looked surprised for a moment, her violet eyes never ceasing to surprise him, but her face turned serious again.

"You do realize that you were about to be on death row right? Because you completely ignored what we asked you to do." Rukia muttered back.

"I thought the guy had shot you!" Ichigo shouted back. Rukia looked confused for a moment, but closed her eyes in aggravation, letting out a loud sigh.

"I need to know why you came here!" Rukia screamed.

Ichigo had enough.

"Fine! You wanna know why I'm here? I had to work tonight, and I had to come to downtown Tokyo to do a part of it. Well I've never been to this part of the area, and I got lost, riding around on this bus for who knows how long to figure out where the hell I was." Ichigo paused, glaring directly at Rukia. "And then you come onto the bus, and I feel really confused then, since I found it kind of strange that you were here. When we were the only ones left, I thought that maybe you were lost as well, so I thought I'd go and talk to you, ask if you knew you're way around here, when those two got onto the bus." Ichigo paused again, pointing behind Rukia to the other guys.

"Well I'm sorry, but I thought that they were going to hurt you, since I knew who they were and everything, but it turns out that you know the guys, and that you happen to work for the gang yourself!" Ichigo finished, completely out of breath for his lack of control.

Rukia didn't say anything for a long time, and she turned to look at Ikkaku and the red-headed guy.

"What should we do?" Rukia asked them.

"It's best that we let him off the hook for now. You go to high school with him right?" The red-head asked.

"Yah, so I guess I can keep tabs on him until then, and figure out what the leader wants us to do with him." Rukia mumbled back.

What their leader wanted to do with him? Were they going to torture him or something?

Just what sort of mess had Ichigo gotten himself into?

Rukia turned back to look at him. "You really should be more careful when traveling to this area. Now you're in deep, and we can't just let you walk away from what you've seen." Rukia said to him.

"Sorry, but it's not exactly my choice where I have to go for my job." Ichigo mumbled back.

"I'll show you how to get back to Karakura town from here, but I need you to promise me something in the meantime." Rukia asked.

"What?" Ichigo replied.

"You can tell no one of what you have seen tonight. Do you understand? That man that I was speaking with is very powerful, and extremely dangerous. Taking the life of some kid he doesn't know won't be anything on his conscious."

"I'm assuming no one knows that you happen to be apart of this gang either." Ichigo shot back. "I don't get it. How can someone as smart as you work for something so…"

"Dangerous and illegal?" Rukia asked. "That is none of your concern, but it would become a problem if other people knew."

"Yah, I don't think that putting gang member on a college resume would look good for you."

"So, we have a deal then?" Rukia asked.

"It's not really a deal, it's more like a threat. I keep my mouth shut, and you or that other guy with the glasses won't kill me." Ichigo mumbled back, trying not to think about it too deeply.

Rukia smiled.

"You've got it all figured out."

—

It only took thirty minutes for him to reach Karakura town, and the rest he had to spend walking home.

Everything felt like a blur of events to him, a nightmare almost, but everything had occurred. Ichigo could barely even remember the sole reason as to why he'd gone to Tokyo.

His night had been a long and stressful one.

Who would have ever thought that Kuchiki Rukia, a girl that had no problem with grades, a goody girl in many ways, turned out to be not such a goody girl. Did she live in Tokyo? Or did she live in Karakura and just go to Tokyo at nights?

And then he gritted his teeth together at the realization that things were not settled. Ichigo had gotten caught in the middle of a big ordeal, and he himself would have to go back again, and face the yakuza fearlessly.

His hands balled into fists as he continued to walk home.

Ichigo's wish had been granted.

Hadn't he wanted a change in his life? Something to happen quickly, to make his senior year exciting.

It had slapped him in the face, and attacked him at full throttle. Ichigo's life did feel different, but not in the way he wanted it to. It was an unsafe and uncomfortable feeling.

And he couldn't say a word to anyone about it, though he really didn't want to.

First of all, he was going to take Rukia's advice, because seeing as how a gun was pulled to his head, there was a high chance that someone would shoot him, and he didn't exactly want that to happen. Second, no one at his school would actually believe that Kuchiki Rukia, the perfect nerd of Karakura high, was a wanted member of one of the most dangerous yakuzas in Tokyo. People would call him insane, and that was something Ichigo could easily live without.

So what could he do? Just ignore everything and forget it ever happened?

No, he couldn't, it was impossible.

Ichigo finally reached his home, and was not surprised to see Tessai sitting in the living room, a large metal bat snuggled in his lap.

"Do you have any idea what time it is Kurosaki?" Tessai asked.

"Yep, about one in the morning. I called Urahara and told him. I just got lost in Tokyo, so it took me a while to get home." Ichigo replied.

"Oh ok. As long as you weren't held hostage or mugged or anything like that." Tessai replied. Ichigo froze. Did Tessai somehow know?

Hell, from what Ichigo had seen tonight, perhaps Tessai was a member of the gang too. If Kuchiki Rukia could be a member of the gang, there were many possibilities.

"You look tense Ichigo. Is everything alright?" Tessai asked. Ichigo just shrugged his shoulders.

"It's just cold out, and I'm tired. Why do you have a bat?" Ichigo asked.

"Oh, this was for in the case that I had to kick your ass for coming home late drunk or stoned. I heard that's what many parents do to their children in similar situations." Tessai replied.

Ichigo stared at the crazy man, slowly backing away to his room. "Right, well I better get to bed."

"Goodnight Ichigo. I'll have a fresh batch of egg yolk waiting for you!" Tessai called out as Ichigo made it to his room.

The weekend breezed by quickly, and the whole time Ichigo only thought about Friday night, and Kuchiki Rukia.

He was suddenly beyond curious about her, and when Monday morning rolled around, Ichigo was determined to pay more attention to her. There was always some sort of gossip floating around about her. He wanted to find any connection that would make any sense for Rukia to be a member of the yakuza.

Getting to school had not been the relief he'd wanted. Ichigo had hoped that he would get distracted by seeing Keigo, or anyone of his other classmates, but right off the bat, Rukia was the first person Ichigo saw that morning. She didn't speak to him, she only looked at him curiously before turning away and walking to the same bench that she usually sat on, a book already settled into her lap.

That's right, she was going to keep tabs on him. How was she going to do that without out looking conspicuous? Following him around would be very odd, considering he'd never uttered a word to her at school.

Walking by some girls, he saw them all staring at Rukia.

"I heard she wants to go to school in America, to Harvard or something." One girl murmured.

"I wonder why she would want to go so far away?" Another girl asked.

"Who knows. She's kind of on the strange side, so it'd be good to have her go somewhere else. It sickens me how she's so good at so many things. Little Miss Perfect, and she's only been here for two years!" The first girl cried.

"I heard she used to live in a really poor area before she moved here." The second girl whispered.

"I don't see how she has time to study since she's president to all those clubs." The first girl whispered back.

Ichigo finally walked away. Rumors didn't help much since the words always got twisted around. But still, hearing about more about her reputation at school didn't really tie in with being in the yakuza.

The only way to get answers would be to talk to her, but he just couldn't do that. She said that she would talk to him when the time was right, but Ichigo was already getting impatient.

He wished none of it had ever happened, that he'd asked someone in downtown Tokyo for directions on how to get back to Karakura instead of following Rukia around.

It just wasn't dawning on him that his life had been put on the line, that he really was in a load of trouble.

A slap to the back caused Ichigo to jump.

"Ichigo! You never returned my phone call once this weekend!" Keigo cried.

"Don't you have someone else to bother?" Ichigo muttered back. Keigo frowned.

"I'm such a good friend to you, but you always treat me like I'm nothing!" Keigo shouted back. Sometimes Ichigo wondered if Keigo had PMS. It was bad enough when Yuzu, Karin, and _Isshin_ used to get it.

As Ichigo and Keigo began walking to class, Keigo continued to rant Ichigo with questions. "Did you have a good weekend?" Keigo asked, going back to his chirpy attitude like before.

"It was ok." Ichigo replied.

"What did you do?" Keigo asked.

"Stuff."

"What kind of stuff?"

Ichigo rolled his eyes. "I don't know, stuff like homework."

Keigo sighed. "You did homework all weekend?"

"Some people actually do their homework." Ichigo shot back.

"Come on, just admit it. You met a girl didn't you!" Keigo said with a wide grin.

That was one way of putting it, as Ichigo had never really said anything to Kuchiki Rukia before the weekend.

"No Keigo, I didn't meet any girls." Ichigo replied dully. "Now stop asking so many pointless questions and go to class."

Keigo frowned as he always did while Ichigo walked into his first period classroom.

"They aren't pointless!" Keigo shouted before disappearing down the hallway.

Ichigo dropped his head on his desk once he entered the classroom. Although it was a sunny and beautiful day, it just didn't feel like it. Ichigo kept thinking it was raining outside, pouring out all around him.

The day continued on, much like the weekend, except Ichigo saw Rukia more than usual, probably since she was watching to make sure he didn't "spill the beans" to anyone. He supposed she had reason to. She didn't know Ichigo at all, minus Friday, where she'd seen him freak out to hearing a gun shot.

On the other hand though, it really bothered him. Ichigo knew himself, and knew he wouldn't say anything. He just didn't have a desire to, but he didn't like that he had to put his trust in a girl he didn't know, no matter how smart and ingenious she was.

It was hard to see her as a bright student when she was working for something low and illegal.

Getting home that evening helped clear his mind, but only because Jinta and Tessai wouldn't leave him alone.

"What's wrong with you freak?" Jinta asked, chucking a tennis ball at Ichigo's head. Ichigo dodged the ball, but Jinta through another ball immediately following, smacking Ichigo right between the eyes.

"It will take approximately 15.5 seconds for Ichigo to recover." Ururu mumbled from outside as she swept the porch.

"Shut up and keep sweeping!" Jinta demanded.

Ururu frowned and stayed silent after that. Sometimes Ichigo felt bad for the little robot girl/alien.

Ichigo picked up the tennis ball and threw it right back at Jinta, hitting the boy square in the stomach.

"Maybe that will teach you not to chuck a ball at guy twice your size!" Ichigo muttered.

Tessai was suddenly standing outside the doorway.

"Ichigo, I'm afraid you'll have to pay for hitting a boy much smaller than you." Tessai warned, the metal bat gripped tightly in his hand.

Ah hell.

* * *

Several more days passed, and the incident still kept replaying in his mind. In class, in his sleep, everywhere, it would not leave him alone.

Learning a little bit more about Kuchiki Rukia hadn't helped ease him either. He only learned the clubs of what she was president of, which included the debate team, the astronomy club, and the art club.

Nothing was falling into place, and every day Ichigo felt more tempted to just ask her, not caring if students were walking around staring at them curiously.

Walking home on Wednesday afternoon, Ichigo tried thinking about something else, his friends for one.

"I haven't talked to Chad in a while, maybe I'll call him up." Ichigo said to himself mentally. He was just too stressed about the situation, and needed to relax. School wasn't good because Rukia was always around, and Urahara's place didn't help either since Tessai and Jinta constantly asked what was bothering him.

Hanging out with a friend from school, outside of school might be a good suggestion.

Ichigo was so deep in thought that he didn't hear the footsteps from behind, getting closer with every step.

"Chad likes movies, so maybe we can go see some sort of action movie." Ichigo mumbled. But that wouldn't work, since seeing a bunch of gun shots and fighting would easily make him think of his current situation.

"Kurosaki Ichigo." A voice from behind called out.

Ichigo froze immediately, turning around slowly.

Kuchiki Rukia was standing on the sidewalk.

"Did you follow me all the way here?" Ichigo asked. Rukia crossed her arms.

"It's not very hard. You really are bad at paying attention to your surroundings." Rukia replied smugly.

"What do you want…Kuchiki-san?" Ichigo asked, realizing he'd never said her name before.

Rukia walked closer to him, and when she spoke, her voice was much softer than before.

"The boss has come to an agreement, and wants to see you tomorrow night." Rukia replied.

"Am I in trouble?" Ichigo asked sarcastically. Rukia laughed lightly.

"Well Kurosaki-san, you've kind of been in trouble since the incident on Friday, so yes, you are in trouble." Rukia responded.

Ichigo didn't like that one bit. Just what did this boss of hers have in store for Ichigo?

"I'm sorry you had to wait, but its busy being in the yakuza." Rukia said softly.

"How am I supposed to get there?" Ichigo asked, holding onto his bag tightly.

"Meet me at 3 o'clock at this very spot. Can you do that?"

Ichigo nodded, and Rukia began turning to leave.

"Just one last question." Ichigo added. Rukia paused and turned her head enough to look directly at him.

"Yes?"

Ichigo smirked. "Am I by any chance going to learn more about how you connect to all of this?"

Rukia smiled. "If you come, then you just might, and I'd advice you to come, considering it's your life, or death in some cases."

Ichigo gulped.

And then she was gone.

Hopefully the questions that had constantly been disturbing Ichigo would be answered, and he'd be able to walk away without a second glance.

Then again, he had no idea what was actually in store for him. Just how ruthless could a gang be? Rukia didn't seem to be a mean person, but the other men she had been with…they on the other hand, acted different.

"I wanted change, so I guess I should be thankful my wish came true." Ichigo muttered before turning on his heel, and returning home.

Hopefully Tessai wouldn't have his baseball bat out again.

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**A/N: **So now Ichigo has to go and see Rukia's boss! What will be said, and what will Ichigo have to do to stay safe? The next chapter should be interesting, so be watching out for an update! I hope everything is making sense! Basically, a part of Ichigo wants to learn about Rukia, because naturally he is curious as to why someone like her does the things she does, but the other part of him wants to forget about it all together? Does that help??

PLEASE REVIEW! Thanks a million!! Next chapter will definitely NOT be updated as quickly. I still need to update my other stories! (which I will be doing soon!)


	4. The Meeting

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, I don't own these characters, and I don't own my home (because my parents do). **

Here's Ch.4 guys. I didn't get that many reviews for the last chapter, which made me kind of sad (though I guess not a whole bunch happened in the last chapter) but I think you'll enjoy this one.

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**Quid Quo Pro**

**Ch.4 The Meeting**

Since sitting didn't help at all, he rose to his feet. His hands were shoved deeply in his pockets, and he then he couldn't seem to stop fidgeting.

Being nervous was a clear understatement.

Ichigo glanced at his watch shakily. "It's 2:59 p.m." He mumbled.

In just one minute, something he didn't want to happen or even thing about was about to occur. In just one minute, the questions and dilemmas he'd been experiencing would come to an end, creating more questions and dilemmas. In just one minute, he would be entering a dangerous world, and his life could possibly end if one thing went wrong.

Ichigo shoved the last thought out of his head. He didn't know how he'd acted so calmly when he'd been held at gun point, and he knew it wasn't from being brave.

"I guess I'm just a really weird guy." Ichigo whispered to himself.

He stared at his watch as the seconds went by, and time seemed to want to pass slowly for him. There was no sun in the sky that day, but sweat still poured down his face.

At exactly 3 o'clock, a black car turned down the road. Ichigo hoped and prayed it would keep going, and not be who was thinking it was. It was wishful thinking of course since the black car slowed down and stopped directly in front of him.

The back door opened, revealing Kuchiki Rukia on, wearing regular clothes instead of the school uniform from earlier that day.

"You sure you want to do this?" Rukia asked before Ichigo took a step towards the car.

No, Ichigo did not want to go, but he'd got himself into the mess, and he supposed if he wanted to live as she'd put it, and her warning had sounded far more than serious, that he better take his chances.

"Yah." He replied, and stepped into the vehicle. Ichigo sat down on the soft leather seats, and Rukia moved towards the other passenger side. The driver and the passenger in the front row both had on the same black jackets, but Ichigo didn't recognize them as the two men from last Friday. All Ichigo could see of their appearances were their hair colors, which both were dark brown. The driver's hair was longer though, reaching his neck, while the passenger had short brown spiky hair.

"So where are we going?" Ichigo asked.

"To meet with the leader, remember?" Rukia replied back, rolling her eyes.

Ichigo sighed. "Ok, I know that, but where exactly are we meeting him?"

Rukia turned to look out the window as she spoke. "You'll find out soon enough, so just keep your pants on until then, ok?"

"Well in the meantime, can I ask you those questions I was wondering about, like how you tie into everything?" Ichigo asked, hoping he could at least know that much.

"No, I can't tell you any of that until you meet the leader." Rukia paused and looked away from the window and back to Ichigo. "I'm not sure how long this will take, so I hope you've told your parents in advance that you might be out late."

Ichigo nodded his head. "It's all taken care of." He replied. Ichigo told Urahara that he was going to study with a friend, and depending on how they took in the material, it would rather take a long time, or a couple of hours. Urahara didn't care, but Tessai gave him a suspicious look.

The rest of the ride was silent, and in no time did Ichigo realize that they were traveling to Tokyo, although he assumed they'd be headed in that direction. Ichigo focused his attention on the two men in the front, and noticed how aware of their surroundings they seemed. It made sense he supposed, and the silence began to turn awkward. Ichigo was sitting in a car full of people he didn't know, and what's worse was that they were gang members, people who did very illegal and dangerous things. They killed people.

Had Rukia ever killed anyone?

That definitely was not a question to start off with.

In no time were they in Tokyo, and Ichigo felt confusion when they stopped at a secluded street just a little ways off from where the subway and main streets had been.

"I need you to follow me, understand?" Rukia asked with a very serious tone.

"Be careful Rukia-san." The passenger said as Rukia opened the door. She gave the man a smile, and both Ichigo and Rukia climbed out of the vehicle. Before they began to move, Rukia stared at her surroundings, averting her eyes from left to right in a constant motion. After repeating the process three times, Rukia began walking forward.

"Come on, let's go." Rukia called out. Ichigo wordlessly followed behind her, trying figure out just where they were going. They walked all the way from the smaller street to the main street, where people were hustling and bustling to get to their designations.

When Rukia began moving again, Ichigo had to pick up his pace. For such a short girl, she really knew how to move quickly.

"Why are we walking so fast?" Ichigo asked.

"Because we need to catch a subway." Rukia replied quickly.

He became more and more curious about where they were going. Would he get to see where Rukia's gang lived? Where the main headquarters were located? He knew asking questions would be pointless since Rukia seemed to be a pretty stubborn person, so Ichigo figured he should just do what she says, even if she did sound crazy.

Sure enough, Ichigo and Rukia descended down the dirty stairway that would take them to the subway. He'd only been on the subway several times in his life, and everyone had been quite uneventful. Weird people always took the subway, staring at him like he was a piece of meat, and probably checking to see if he had a nice wallet stuffed with money.

As soon as the subways came into view, a subway pulled up, and people began walking aboard. "Is this the one we need to get on?" Ichigo asked. Rukia shook her head.

"No, it should be the next one. I was worried we would be late, but it seems it's not the case." Rukia replied.

People were staring at Ichigo and Rukia as they passed. At first, Ichigo assumed it was his hair color, which happened quite often, but he noticed their eyes were looking down and away from him.

They were staring at Rukia.

He took a glance at her, wondering why people would be so curious about her, and found out why. Rukia had a bright blue dress on, complete with flowers and polka dots. Everyone surrounding them had nothing but suits or rags on, so he supposed her dress stood out from what everyone else was wearing.

A new subway had already pulled up, and Rukia snapped her head up from whoever she had been texting.

"That's the one we need to get on, come on." Rukia said to him. Ichigo once again silently followed behind her with his hands shoved in his pockets, his sights set on the doors to the subway.

The question of where they were going was really eating at him. Only a few people got onto the subway, and Rukia and Ichigo took seats towards the back.

"We're almost there." Rukia whispered as she glanced at her watch. Ichigo did the same, and was surprised to find that it was already 4 o'clock.

The only other people on the subway were of course, extremely weird. One woman was mumbling to herself, and another man was staring at the light with a stoned expression. There was no doubt in Ichigo's mind that the man was stoned. The subway stopped once again, and Ichigo stood to get up. A tap on his arm turned his attention to Rukia, who was still sitting down.

"We don't get off at this stop." Rukia told him. Ichigo slowly sat back down next to Rukia. He turned his head to the entrance of the subway when he heard to men laughing.

They stumbled onto the train, both wearing black jackets. One had a green mohawk while the other man had bleach blonde hair. Both of them appeared to be a little older than Ichigo, and extremely drunk.

"Haha, I can't believe that!" The guy with the mohawk cried. They continued to move on the bus, and stopped when they glanced at Rukia.

Ah, crap.

"Well, look at what we have here!" The other guy shouted with a wide grin. Rukia glanced at them, and rolled her eyes.

The man with the green mohawk placed his hand on one of the nearby poles and spun around so that he was closer to Rukia.

"You wanna come have some fun with us?" He asked her. Ichigo was already beginning to stand up. He hated guys like them, drunk or not.

"No thank you." Rukia replied calmly, closing her eyes with annoyance.

Ichigo hadn't even noticed that the other guy was on his side. "Aw come on! Ditch this bozo here and come with us! We'll show you a great time." The blonde man replied enthusiastically.

The other man's hand was already grabbing Rukia's arm. "Come on, I know this great little place." The man replied more seriously. Ichigo stood from his seat, but the blonde man on Ichigo's side grabbed his arm as well, yanking him back.

Rukia was shoved against the wall, and Ichigo jerked his arm out of the blonde guy's grip to get to her.

"Let go of her!" Ichigo called angrily. The blonde guy came behind him again, and was grabbing his arms to stop him from moving.

The other man pulled Rukia off the wall and held her closer to her body. Rukia looked extremely calm throughout the whole ordeal.

"And what are you going to do about it?" He asked, leaning his head into Rukia as he finished his sentence.

Rukia's elbow suddenly came up high, despite just being held down and elbowed the man square in the stomach. He quickly released his hold on her, clutching his stomach with pain.

"Hey!" The blonde guy called out. Ichigo took advantage of the moment, and punched the guy in the face. He stumbled back, holding onto his nose in pain.

"You broke my nose!" He called out.

The other man began recovering from the elbow to his stomach, and began standing up. Rukia was quick though, and gave him a firm kick to his most weakest point. Ichigo had to wince as the man fell slowly to the ground, a shocked expression on his face.

At that exact moment, the subway stopped once again. "Come on Kaji, let's go!" The blonde man cried, pulling his friend up from the ground. They were off the subway in no time.

Rukia calmly took her seat again, acting like nothing happened. Ichigo stared at her in disbelief and slowly sat down next to her.

"You really kicked his a —"

"I deal with creeps like that all the time. They're everywhere in downtown Tokyo." Rukia replied with her eyes closed. "I'm quite surprised you punched that guy as hard as you did."

Ichigo smirked. "Not everyone in Karakura is nice you know. There's always someone looking for a fight for the dumbest of reasons, and someone like me just can't help but get pulled into it all."

Rukia opened her eyes and looked at him.

"Well with your hair color, it's easy to see why." Rukia replied with a smile. Ichigo rolled his eyes. "Is it natural?"

Ichigo blinked at her. Not many people asked him such a question. "Yah, its natural. I don't know exactly who I got the color from, but I was born with it." Ichigo replied.

"We'll be getting off at the next stop." Rukia told him. Ichigo was relieved. Hopefully there wouldn't be any drunks like Ichigo had just witnessed getting onto the train as he left. It seemed Rukia's sun dress was just too much for certain men to handle.

He'd been surprised to see Rukia sticking up for herself the way she had. It wasn't that she looked to be in no way a push over, despite her small size, but she knocked the guy out so effortlessly, and with calm composure. The questions continued to come, and his curiosity was really getting the better of him.

Finally, the subway stopped, and the doors opened. As they walked towards the doors, Ichigo found the surrounding areas to be empty. Instead of finding an exit area, with lots of people, Ichigo found a dark wall, much like the surrounding subway areas.

"Um, Kuchiki-san, where are we going?" Ichigo asked.

"Like I've been saying this whole time, just follow me." Rukia replied. Finding a sidewalk in the darkness, Ichigo walked behind her, hands shoved in his pockets like before.

After several minutes of walking down the long sidewalk, Rukia began looking around frantically.

"Where are they?" She asked out loud. Ichigo just kept his mouth closed since he had no idea what he was talking about.

"We're right here!" A voice replied. Ichigo looked up to see two dark figures approaching them. Once they were close enough, Ichigo recognized them.

"Ikkaku! Renji! You're late!" Rukia shouted. The bald guy, Ikkaku, shrugged his shoulders with a smile.

"Well sorry your highness, but we're running a little behind." Ikkaku replied.

"Come on, the boss is waiting." The man with red hair, Renji as Rukia had called him, replied.

Ichigo followed behind silently, because he found he couldn't speak. The moment of truth he'd been waiting for was just around the corner, and he only hoped he could survive for the night.

"Did you guys get here ok?" Renji asked.

"We ran into some punks on the subway, but we took care of them." Rukia replied.

"Wait, we? You mean he helped you too?" Ikkaku asked. Ichigo assumed he was referring to him.

"Yah, Kurosaki-san was a big help. He's got a pretty firm punch to my surprise." Rukia replied with a smirk.

"You sure you aren't in a gang already? I mean, the way you acted last Friday, so calm and everything when being held at gunpoint, and then you punched a guy on the subway? That's pretty good for someone who grew up in Karakura." Ikkaku said with a grin.

"He's had his share of fights." Rukia replied. Ichigo was glad she was speaking for him, because he didn't really feel like saying anything at the moment.

All four of them came into contact with a door.

"This is it Kurosaki-san, are you ready?" Rukia asked. All eyes were on him.

Ichigo nodded slowly, and Renji turned around, knocking on the door three times. It took a minute for the door to open, and after Renji and Rukia entered into the room, Ichigo followed behind, with Ikkaku behind him.

There were about five other people in the room, all staring directly at Ichigo.

He felt his body become stiff at the intenseness of their stares, and it also didn't help that they looked pissed off.

"The boss will be here any second." One of the men demanded. Rukia nodded and scooted Ichigo away from the door.

So was this where gang lived at? In the middle of a subway? Or was this just simply the place where Ichigo was meeting their leader? He looked towards the seven people that were still staring at him.

The first was a girl with short choppy bangs, and two long braids descending down her back. The second was a short guy with white hair, and bright blue eyes, his glare possibly the worst from the group. The third person was a tall woman with long wavy hair, her outfit much more…revealing than the rest. The fourth person was tall and skinny with silver hair. He had one of the scariest smiles Ichigo had ever seen. The fifth person was a quiet looking woman with a long braid dark braid down the front of body.

"The boss is here." The same man as before called out. Ichigo glanced towards the door as the knob began to turn, and he knew his body was going to go rigid.

"Just stay calm." Rukia replied. Ichigo nodded at her words, but they didn't help all the much.

The door opened revealing a man who was extremely tall, with the craziest spikes Ichigo had ever seen, bells at the end of each spike. The man had an eye patch on one eye, and his eyes quickly met Ichigo's.

Was he the leader? He looked creepy enough, but was that him really him?

The tall man moved out of the way, and next, two women entered into the doorway. One had short silver hair, while the other…looked identical to Rukia, only she looked older.

She must have been Rukia's sister, because even her hair style was similar to Rukia's.

And last but not least, a fourth person entered the room, coldly, and the moment Ichigo saw him, he knew exactly who the man was just by his appearance alone.

Their leader.

Ichigo had never seen such cold eyes, and they frightened him a little, intimidated him. The man had black hair, with several streaks of hair covering his face. Unlike just about everyone else, he had a black business suit on instead of the black leather jacket and pants.

His eyes scanned the room dangerously, until they met Ichigo's.

Ikkaku came behind the man and closed the door, locking it securely. The boss walked across the room, his eyes glued to Ichigo's the entire time. Everyone person at the front of the room parted a path down the middle so that their leader could stand.

"Kurosaki Ichigo I presume." The man muttered coldly, with no emotion whatsoever. Ichigo could only nod his head. It seemed he just couldn't mutter up the courage to speak, though he had a lot to be afraid of, especially since just about every person in the room had a katana hanging from their waist.

"You have caused me great problems Kurosaki." The leader explained. "And there is only one solution I find that is suitable for you to do."

Ichigo waited for the guy to speak.

"The only answer I see fit is that you work for this gang for a little while, until Aizen forgets of your existence." Byakuya replied.

So, Ichigo would have to work for them?

"Nii-sama, is there no other way?" Rukia asked from next to him.

Did she just call him…Nii-sama?

Byakuya finally averted his hard eyes away from Ichigo's to Rukia's, and he found the ability to breathe again.

"No, there is no other way Rukia. Perhaps if you had been more careful, this entire problem would never have occurred." Byakuya snapped back at her.

It wasn't Rukia's fault that anything happened. If Ichigo weren't so frozen to his spot, he might have stood up for Rukia.

"Here's the deal Kurosaki," Byakuya began, pausing to fix his glare back on Ichigo. "You work for me for a month, and when everything is cleared up, you can walk away, and never glance back at what you saw, and you who met, understand?"

"And what if I don't?" Ichigo asked, surprised his voice sounded so clearly. He hadn't meant the question to be rude or smart-mouthed, but apparently it was really offending, because everyone in the room stared at him with shocked expressions.

Byakuya stared at him for a long time before speaking again. "If you refuse the deal, then there is a high chance you will be killed."

That was all Ichigo really needed to know.

"Alright then, I accept." Ichigo replied. Byakuya closed his eyes for a brief second, and moved towards the doorway, the three people that had entered with him before, and the five people that had stared at him in the beginning following behind. Ikkaku opened the door, and Byakuya paused before exiting.

"Rukia, you know what to do." He replied emotionlessly before closing the door.

Ichigo stared at the doorway for a second, feeling dazed about everything he'd just seen.

"Any questions?" Rukia asked.

"Yah, to start off, why the hell didn't you tell me your brother was the leader to this gang?"

* * *

**A/N:** This has definitely been my favorite chapter so far. We got to meet Byakuya, and Ichigo had a little drama with Rukia already (yay!) Next chapter will be Ichigo learning more about what the gang does, and what role he will play in it!

PLEASE REVIEW! Pretty please? With sugar on top? Come on, I'll make you some brownies (I just had some on Saturday and they were delicious!)


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